Certain lights ease dementia

Certain lights may improve quality of life for residents with Alzheimer's and other types of dementia, according to a new study.

Blue-white lights were installed in 14 rooms of residents with dementia for four weeks. New York-based researchers used standardized tools to measure sleep duration and quality, agitation and depression — all of which improved significantly, they found. Nursing staff also reported that residents were eating better.

Results appeared in SLEEP and were presented at the American Academy of Sleep Medicine's SLEEP conference in June.

A Florida nursing home fired one of its nursing assistants earlier this month after she used social media to call for help for the facility in the aftermath of Hurricane Irma, according to local reports.

Voicemails from the Hollywood, FL, skilled nursing facility where several residents died following Hurricane Irma were deleted by Gov. Rick Scott (R), potentially complicating the ongoing investigation into the incident.